Just to keep us back talking about the Hyperia that exists and not the imagainary one with LIMs, here's my review.
Over the weekend I got three rides, one at night (albeit middle row), one back and one front. And I still don't know what to make of the world's first rollercoaster where its toilet block looks nicer than its station.
After looking at the supports for so long I felt like Bart Simpson.
This truly is a hideously presented ride. The colours. The swamp. The box station. All of it. What were they thinking? I was hoping it just didn't come out well in photos but it really is that colour. The little art deco details that pop up a few times are really nice, it's a shame they didn't bother really doing anything with it. I guess the toilet block made an effort but it still looks like a newbuild train station or something. The area follows the standard Merlin layout of plonking the ride in the corner, sticking a horrible queue down cheaply and dotting some buildings around the other side in a way that really doesn't lend itself to extension or blending in with the areas around it. The biggest let down though was perhaps how few good photo opportunities there are for it, which seems crazy considering its size. It was also disappointing that the front of the train just has a sticker on - it could do with all those rivets being real to add a bit of mass and momentum.
There's been a lot of comparisons with Nemesis due to how short it is, but I don't think they really hold at all. Nemesis uses all of its potential energy and feels complete in a narrative sense - it builds towards the climactic loop, the big turnaround gives a breather, the final inversion provides the payoff. Nemesis manages twice as many elements before it ends. If you don't count the (incredible) drop, which every coaster with a lift hill has, Hyperia manages three elements before the brakes. And two afterwards if you're generous enough to include the bump into the final, huge brakerun. Is that really good enough given the height?
Some rides get away with being extremely minimal, like Oblivion or even Stealth across the way, because they're designed to be focused on that singular feature, and that purity is the point. But there's a ceiling to how good these coasters can be. Hyperia is maybe more like coasters like Stormrunner, choosing to go all out at the start and end suddenly instead of allowing themselves to start slowing down and fading away. The problem with Hyperia with this is because the brakes come at the bottom of a straightforward half-loop after a long, graceful zero-g hang, it doesn't feel like it's at its peak, or like it's out of control and being wrestled to a stop lest you or it stop being able to cope with the forces.
That said though, the first drop really is spectacular. The best I've ever been on. The little fake-out where it briefly looks as if the drop is leading into the turnaround, before snapping around to face the opposite direction really adds something to it, especially at the front. The not-quite inversion that follows has a satisfying snap to it and the airtime that follows is great.
The turnaround is a weird one. The first time I rode it I got a lot out of it, thought it was really funky and cool, but on subsequent rerides it didn't really do much for me. Maybe it was the novelty wore off, maybe the extra speed at night made a difference. It's definitely more fun on the right hand seat, and the supports seem a bit closer to you on that side. The stall is great, but I prefer the versions on the likes of Volton and Wildfire that snap back the right way round instead of the half loop. This has been quite a negative sounding review so far but honestly, it's a great start.
And then it's over.
The final turn is bigger, faster, more forceful than I expected it to be in fairness. I love the little outerbank out of the station and how it makes all three turns have this repeating motif, I just wish that on the final turn it had a little bit more speed and could have done more, maybe something like a cross between what was built and the finale of Zadra; like a squashed version of the big turn. It would stick to the theme but just make it a bit more interesting.
It does have a little bit of a rattle, I think as I'm starting to age I'm becoming more sensitive to that sort of thing, but it's never distracting or detracting.
Just like The Swarm, what they built is great while it lasts, and then just ends at a seemingly random point and so it just about misses out on the top 10 of my fairly limited count. For me it's probably the best ride at Thorpe, but in the UK? Not even close. The first drop alone carries it above most of what we have here, but that's not hard considering how starved we've become compared to the continent. A little bit longer and it would seriously trouble The Smiler, but even after all these years, Nemesis is still way clear.
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